Month: October 2015

The Judicial Police, through the National Counter Terrorism Unit (UNCT), conducted an operation and freed a young kidnapped person and at the same time arresting three men, aged between 23 and 26 years, for kidnapping and extortion.

The abduction, tool place in the city center of Lisbon, late on 28th October. The victim aged 22 years was later freed by the Judicial Police in Vialonga. The motive of these facts is allegedly related to drug trafficking.

During the abduction, the culprits acted violently, in order to to force the victim to pay the ransom required.  Since the victim did not have the money to make any type of payment, the kidnappers then began to coerce and press for payment.

 The detainees will be present at the first court hearing for the application of appropriate enforcement measures.

PSP Superientendente Luís Carrilho has been awarded by the Secretary General of the United Nations Ban Ki-moon, as an “Outstanding Role Model”.

The award was made for his work as the Police Commander whilst attached to the UN Peace Keeping Mission to the Central African Republic. Aged 49 years, Superientendent Corrilho has previously served in similar roles in East Timor and Haiti.

He is the first Portuguese national to have received this prestigious award which is given annually.

Comment

Many congratulations and an excellent reflection on the diverse and professional work of the PSP

The PSP have announced deatails of the radar spped checks from toda7 26th October to the 30th of this month..

Açores
26-out-15 07H00/13H00 Estrada Regional n.º 1 de 1ª Classe, no lugar da Ponta Nova, entre a freguesia da Feteira e o Porto Judeu, concelho de Angra do Heroísmo – ilha Terceira.

Aveiro
26-out-15 08H00/14H00 Estrada Nacional 16 – Aveiro, KM 0.5 (JUNTO À CORVAUTO)
30-out-15 08H00/14H00 Av. da Universidade, Glória – Aveiro

Braga
27-out-15 14H00/19H30 Rotunda Cibernética – Barcelos
31-out-15 00H30/03H30 Av. António Macedo – Braga

Castelo Branco
26-out-15 08H00/12H00 Alameda Pêro da Covilhã – Covilhã
28-out-15 08H00/12H00 Estrada Nacional 233 – Buenos Aires – Castelo Branco

Coimbra
27-out-15 17H00 Av. Inês de Castro – Coimbra
29-out-15 14H00 R. U. Centro Escolar S. Julião – Figueira da Foz

Évora
26-out-15 17H00 Estrada Nacional 18 (Redondo/Évora)

Guarda
26-out-15 07H30 Estrada do Rio Diz

Leiria
27-out-15 21H00/00H00 Av. General Amílcar Mota – Caldas da Rainha

Lisboa
26-out-15 08H00/12H00 Reta do Cabo Vila Franca de Xira
26-out-15 14H00/18H00 Reta do Cabo Vila Franca de Xira
27-out-15 07H30 Av. Padre Cruz
28-out-15 13H00/18H00 Estrada dos Salgados

Madeira
27-out-15 13H45 VR1 desde a Rotunda do Caniçal até à Ribeira Brava
28-out-15 08H00 Estrada da Ponta da Oliveira – Caniço
29-out-15 18H00 VE 1 Pico do Tanoeiro/VE 1 – túnel do Cortado
29-out-15 18H45 Rua Pestana Júnior; Rua 5 de Outubro e Av. das Madalenas
30-out-15 08H00 VR 1 – Machico

Porto
28-out-15 08H00/12H00 Av. Dr. Antunes Guimarães – Leça Palmeira

Portalegre
26-out-15 08H00 Av. De Badajoz – Portalegre

Santarém
28-out-15 09H00/12H00 Estrada Nacional 3 Calçadinha – Santarém
30-out-15 08H00/12H00 Estrada Nacional 349, Km 72,3 – Terras Pretas – Torres Novas

Vila Real
27-out-15 07H30/09H30 Rua da Paz – Chaves

Viseu
27-out-15 08H00 Estrada Nacional nº 2 – Viseu
28-out-15 15H00 Av. Egas Moniz – Lamego

The PSP Lisbon Airport Security Division revealed last Friday 23^rd October, that about 20% of complaints of thefts taking place at Lisbon Airport resulted in the identification of the suspect, and 10% of these occurrences result in recovery of stolen material.

The commander at the airport informed journalists that between last year and the present, one in five complaints for theft we receive, led to identification of the suspect. In 10% we managed to recover the items stolen from Lisbon Airport.

A new police office built in a space provided by ANA-Aeroportos de Portugal, will improve conditions, provide more space and help the police in carrying out their roles.

The Airport Safety Division (DSA) of the Lisbon Metropolitan Command of the Public Security Police (PSP) receive, on average, per month, 50 criminal complaints and around 150-200 reports of lost/found property.

The Food Safety and Economic Authority (ASAE) said on 23rd October in a statement that they seized last week 6,600 wooden panels for use in the construction industry for non-compliance with legal requirements.

According to ASAE, the panels were from Burma and were seized as they “do not meet the legal requirements, in particular in terms of a lack of declaration concerning specifications and labelling. Their markings do not comply with EU legislation”.

“This intervention by ASAE is part of their remit to carryout enforcement against suppliers selling market products that do not meet the legal requirements, thus ensuring the protection of consumer rights, healthy and fair competition as well as the protection of the internal market,

The ASAE adds that the value of the seizure “amounted to 58,000 euros.” An arrest was made under a tax deed operation aimed at the verification of mandatory requirements for construction products.

A Brazilian man died on Sunday afternoon (18th October) on a Aer Lingus flight between Lisbon and Dublin, Ireland, after swallowing 80 packages of cocaine with a total weight of 800 grams and valued at 52,000 euros.

One or more of the bags burst inside the body causing his death. The drugs were found during the autopsy of John Kennedy Gurjão, aged 25 years, a native of Amapá, Brazil.

A Portuguese woman in her 40s, also on the flight from Lisbon, was arrested on suspicion of drugs offences. It is not clear if her arrest is linked to the man’s death.

Toxicology tests have been carried out on the consignment found in the man’s stomach. Passengers said the man became agitated and then violent and had to be restrained.

A doctor and a nurse treated the man aboard the plane, an A320, after he lost consciousness. The captain declared a medical emergency and diverted the plane to Cork airport, landing early evening local time. About 170 passengers and crew members were taken from the aircraft and were interviewed by police about the incident.

The Irish authorities have asked the assistance of the Judicial Police to establish details of the drug trafficking route in Portugal.

 

It was reported on 21st October that the Judicial Police (PJ) have seized about five kilos of cocaine at Lisbon airport and detained a man carrying the drug hidden in two backpacks.

Police said that the seized drug, enough for 25,250 individual doses of cocaine, was carried by the suspect from Sao Tome and Príncipe and arrived in Lisbon on flight operated by TAP.

The detainee aged 33, has undergone first judicial interrogation and is now in custody. The police operation was conducted by the National Unit to Fight Drug Trafficking (NCT) of PJ.

The United Nations drug agency has been caught in an embarrassing row over drug policy after Sir Richard Branson, who is a member of the Global Commission on Drug Police, leaked an official document which appeared to back  decriminalising possession of drugs.

A few day earlier a report by the BBC said that the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the agency that has overseen the global drug war for 50 years, has been blocked from announcing its momentous new position – that all countries should decriminalise the possession of drugs for personal use. The UNODC was set to unveil the position on Sunday 18th October 2015, at the Harm Reduction International Conference in a short briefing paper which states that: “Member States should consider the implementation of measures to promote the right to health and to reduce prison – overcrowding, including by decriminalising drug use and possession for personal consumption”.

In a devastating critique of the harms caused by criminalisation, the UNODC states: “Protecting public health is a legitimate aim, but imposing criminal sanctions for drug use and possession for personal consumption is neither necessary nor proportionate. On the contrary, punishment aggravates the behavioural, health and social conditions of the affected people.”

However, it appears a member state got wind of the planned announcement, and has prevented or at least delayed the UNODC announcement of its position.

The document was drawn up by Dr Monica Beg, chief of the HIV/AIDs section of the UNODC in Vienna. It was prepared for an international harm reduction conference in Kuala Lumpur next month.

The UNODC oversees international drugs conventions and offers guidance on compliance.

Sources within the UNODC have told the BBC the document was never sanctioned by the organisation as policy. One senior figure within the agency described Dr Beg as “a middle-ranking official” who was offering a professional viewpoint.

The document, on headed agency notepaper, claims it “clarifies the position of UNODC to inform country responses to promote a health and human-rights approach to drug policy”.

On 15 October, an international operation led by Italy and closely supported by France, Spain and Europol, resulted in the discovery and seizure of over 20 tonnes of cannabis resin. The drugs were hidden in the deck of a merchant vessel called Jupiter, flying the flag of the Cook Islands. Ten Syrian citizens were arrested, while six Indian citizens were taken into custody for further investigations. All of them are crew members.

The Italian Guardia di Finanza and DCSA, closely supported by the French OCRTIS-DCPJ and CeCLAD-M, Spanish Guardia Civil and Europol, launched this sharp strike against transnational drug trafficking activities in the Mediterranean Sea.

On the evening of 26 September 2015, the vessel was located by the air and naval forces of the Italian Guardia di Finanza, assisted by a Spanish Guardia Civil aircraft. The Italian intervention teams of the Guardia di Finanza boarded and secured the vessel, escorting it to the Port of Cagliari (Sardinia).

The boarding of the vessel took place in compliance with Article 17 of the U.N. Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs of 1988.

After long and extremely complex search activities carried out by the Gruppo Operativo Antidroga, Counter Narcotics Unit of the Guardia di Finanza- Nucleo di P.T. di Cagliari, the enormous illegal load was found skilfully stashed in a large false bottom under the hold of the vessel with its only access hidden by hundreds of tonnes of granite being used as legal cargo.

French OCRTIS representatives provided on-the-spot assistance in the initial stages of the searches. Their expertise played a decisive role in the subsequent stages of the investigation, leading to the discovery of the illegal activity behind the shipment. Essential intelligence analysis services were provided through the simultaneous deployment of Europol personnel and specialist tools.

The 3^rd Congress of the “Network of Cities to Walk” was held in Torres Vedras, Portugal on 15^th and 16^th October, attended by officials from Portugal and Spain aimed at improving pedestrian safety and reducing road accidents in cities in the Iberian Peninsula. Those attending including officials from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, General Directorate of Traffic and the Director of Planning and Innovation Office Services, Institute for Mobility and Transport (IMT).

The main recommendation approved at the congress was to reduce the speed limit to 30 kilometers per hour [km / h] in residential areas to create secure spots in cities, so that pedestrians and bicycles have highest priority,” said Pablo Bacchus, coordinator of International Network of Cities to Walk. He added that this recommendation will be made to municipalities and central government.

The network includes municipalities in Spain and Portugal and other institutions interested in improving the situation for pedestrians through the implementation and exchange of initiatives to improve universal accessibility, road safety and the environment itself. The basic guidelines of the network are based on the principles enshrined in the Charter of Pedestrian Rights, adopted by Parliament in October 1988 and in the International Bill for walking.

The official explained that, while not reduce the volume of traffic, the reduction in speed “reduces air and noise pollution and road accidents.”

Pablo Bacchus gave the example of Pontevedra (Spain), which today received the Award Cities that Walk 2015 for its good practice in the public spaces of the city, restricting car use and increasing access for citizens. Because of this policy, the Galician city decreased by 80% the number of serious road accidents involving pedestrians